A Democratic Socialist Blog

The First Shot $15 and Up!!!!!

It would be nice t make New Jersey the start of the much needed National Revolution for change. The first fight is for $15 and hour though minimum wage should be $22.00 and Universal Income.
In New Jersey we pay the highest for everything.
New Jersey
Cost of Living Index: 127.6
Grocery Index: 108.2
Housing Index: 167.7
Utilities Index: 117.3
Transportation Index: 112.4
Health Index: 104.3
Misc.: 116.1

Overall, living costs in New Jersey are comparable to California. You’d need that same $95K salary to feel completely comfortable. Home prices in Jersey are lower than in California, though, with the median value of Jersey homes at $278,600 to $500,00. If you’re looking for a home to purchase in the Northern state, the median list price is just under $300K, or $174 per square foot.
Rent is exceptionally high, with the median monthly rent at $1,800. If you rent in an area like Princeton, you may have to pay $275 or so for utilities in a tiny apartment. If you go out for dinner and a movie, expect to pay around $80 to $85 in Princeton.
Stopping short of staking out a position on Gov. Chris Christie’s proposed pension reforms, the New Jersey State League of Municipalities is saying the changes could disenfranchise workers and trigger a mass exodus of local workers.
Employees’ health care coverage would also be reduced and they would have to pay more out of pocket toward their health care. In exchange, the state would constitutionally protect pension payments after decades of shortchanging them.
Nearly two-thirds of moves involving New Jersey were outbound in 2014, citing a survey conducted by United Van Lines, the moving company.
United tracked 4,003 outbound New Jersey moves versus 2,169 inbound moves last year. The exodus amounts to almost 65 percent of the moves.
“The study is based on household moves handled by United within the 48 contiguous states and Washington, D.C.,” the company said. It said it classifies states as “high outbound” when 55 percent or more moves involve people leaving the state.
Last year marked the fourth time in five years New Jersey led the U.S. in outbound migration, the report said. Nearly half of those leaving New Jersey were bound for Florida (15 percent), California (14), Texas (9) and North Carolina (7.5), spokeswoman Melissa Sullivan.
New York and Illinois rounded out the top three with 64 percent and 63 percent of moves leaving those states, respectively .
The UN Declaration of Human Rights Says:
Article 17.
• (1) Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.
(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.
Article 25.
• (1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
• (2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

Poverty in New Jersey continued to grow even as the national recession lifted, reaching a 52-year high in 2011, according to a report released today.
The annual survey by Legal Services of New Jersey found 24.7 percent of the state’s population — 2.1 million residents — was considered poor in 2011. That’s a jump of more than 80,000 people — nearly 1 percent higher than the previous year and 3.8 percent more than pre-recession levels.
“This is not just a one-year or five-year or 10-year variation,” said Melville D. Miller Jr., the president of LSNJ, which gives free legal help to low-income residents in civil cases. “This is the worst that it’s been since the 1960 Census.”
And it may get worse: The report warned Census figures for 2012 to be released this month may be higher. Those numbers are expected to show some of the impact from Hurricane Sandy, which took a bite out of the state’s economy and destroyed a large amount of affordable housing.
The numbers for New Jersey — one of the wealthiest states in the nation — mirror a national trend. In 2011, the federal poverty rate was the largest it had been in 18 years, according to the Congressional Research Service.
This Saturday, we launch a new Revolution, my message is to build a National Machine, over turn restrictive ballot access, and install all the progressive programs. 4/18/15 FIGHT FOR $15 State House Trenton NJ 12-6